Lefty Gomez

Pitcher · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1930-1943)

Lefty Gomez was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1943 for the New York Yankees and the Washington Senators, a span of 14 seasons. Across 368 career appearances, he went 189-102 with a 3.34 ERA and 1,468 strikeouts. He also batted .147 with 0 home runs. Lefty Gomez was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 and was a 7-time All-Star and a 2-time Pitching Triple Crown. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 15583.3.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

⭐ Hall of Fame 1972
W–L 189–102
ERA 3.34
WHIP 1.35
SO 1,468
Pitcher PIV 15583.3
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'2" / 173 lb
Born
11/26/1908 in Rodeo, CA, USA
Died
2/17/1989 in Greenbrae, CA, USA
MLB Debut
1930-04-29
Last Game
1943-05-30
Hall of Fame
Inducted 1972 (BBWAA)
Awards
7× All-Star · 2× Pitching Triple Crown

Full name: Vernon Louis Gomez

📊 Compare This Player 📈 View Career Timeline

Career Pitching Statistics

Lefty Gomez — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
189 102 368 320 173 28 9 2503.0 2,290 930 138 1,095 1,468 3.34 15583.3

Career ERA 3.34 vs. league average 4.16 across their career seasons — 19.7% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lefty Gomez Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1930 NYA AL 2 5 15 6 2 0 1 60.0 66 37 28 22 5.55 4.80 (-16%) -3186.0
1931 NYA AL 21 9 40 26 17 1 3 243.0 206 72 85 150 2.67 4.10 (+35%) 4617.9
1932 NYA AL 24 7 37 31 21 1 1 265.1 266 124 105 176 4.21 4.13 (-2%) -69.2
1933 NYA AL 16 10 35 30 14 4 2 234.2 218 83 106 163 3.18 3.86 (+17%) 571.3
1934 NYA AL 26 5 38 33 25 6 1 281.2 223 73 96 158 2.33 4.29 (+46%) 4605.3
1935 NYA AL 12 15 34 30 15 2 1 246.0 223 87 86 138 3.18 4.35 (+27%) 1647.7
1936 NYA AL 13 7 31 30 10 0 0 188.2 184 92 122 105 4.39 4.59 (+4%) -127.7
1937 NYA AL 21 11 34 34 25 6 0 278.1 233 72 93 194 2.33 4.34 (+46%) 7743.9
1938 NYA AL 18 12 32 32 20 4 0 239.0 239 89 99 129 3.35 4.35 (+23%) 4387.4
1939 NYA AL 12 8 26 26 14 2 0 198.0 173 75 84 102 3.41 4.28 (+20%) 1060.7
1940 NYA AL 3 3 9 5 0 0 0 27.1 37 20 18 14 6.59 4.21 (-56%) -548.2
1941 NYA AL 15 5 23 23 8 2 0 156.1 151 65 103 76 3.74 3.94 (+5%) -2827.9
1942 NYA AL 6 4 13 13 2 0 0 80.0 67 38 65 41 4.28 3.57 (-20%) -2292.0
1943 WS1 AL 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 4.2 4 3 5 0 5.79 — 0.0
Career · 14 seasons 189 102 368 320 173 28 9 2,503.0 2,290 930 1,095 1,468 3.34 — 15,583

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

Lefty Gomez — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
368 904 59 133 11 0 0 58 1 50 252 .147 .194 .159 .353 -6,872

Career AVG .147 vs. league average .273 across their career seasons — 46.1% below league average.

Career OBP .194 vs. league average .338 across their career seasons — 42.8% below league average.

Career SLG .159 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — 58.9% below league average.

Career OPS .353 vs. league average .726 across their career seasons — 51.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Lefty Gomez Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1930 NYA AL 15 20 1 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 9 .150 — — — — 0.0
1931 NYA AL 40 83 8 11 0 0 0 3 0 7 28 .133 .276 (-52%) .338 (-41%) .388 (-66%) .726 (-54%) -711.1
1932 NYA AL 37 104 9 18 2 0 0 15 0 6 36 .173 .275 (-37%) .335 (-35%) .391 (-51%) .726 (-44%) -718.9
1933 NYA AL 35 80 3 9 0 0 0 3 0 7 23 .113 .270 (-58%) .329 (-41%) .377 (-70%) .707 (-57%) -695.9
1934 NYA AL 38 99 8 13 1 0 0 4 0 6 30 .131 .278 (-53%) .340 (-45%) .392 (-64%) .733 (-55%) -875.0
1935 NYA AL 34 83 4 10 0 0 0 4 0 3 15 .120 .279 (-57%) .342 (-56%) .399 (-70%) .742 (-63%) -857.1
1936 NYA AL 31 69 1 10 1 0 0 5 0 3 23 .145 .283 (-49%) .349 (-48%) .404 (-61%) .753 (-55%) -630.1
1937 NYA AL 34 105 8 21 2 0 0 4 1 5 22 .200 .276 (-28%) .342 (-31%) .398 (-45%) .740 (-39%) -656.5
1938 NYA AL 32 86 5 13 2 0 0 7 0 4 18 .151 .272 (-45%) .341 (-45%) .392 (-56%) .734 (-51%) -708.7
1939 NYA AL 26 73 3 11 2 0 0 4 0 5 22 .151 .274 (-45%) .342 (-40%) .393 (-55%) .735 (-48%) -569.2
1940 NYA AL 9 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 — — — — 0.0
1941 NYA AL 23 59 5 9 1 0 0 4 0 3 12 .153 .262 (-42%) .332 (-42%) .373 (-55%) .705 (-49%) -449.7
1942 NYA AL 13 33 4 5 0 0 0 4 0 1 12 .152 — — — — 0.0
1943 WS1 AL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
Career · 14 seasons 368 904 59 133 11 0 0 58 1 50 252 .147 — — — — -6,872

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Lefty Gomez — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
7 20 3 3 0 0 0 4 2 7 .150

Playoff Batting by Year

Lefty Gomez — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1939 WS NYA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
1938 WS NYA 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1937 WS NYA 2 6 2 1 0 0 0 1 2 1 .167
1936 WS NYA 2 8 1 2 0 0 0 3 0 3 .250
1932 WS NYA 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

Lefty Gomez — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
6 0 7 7 0 50.1 51 16 15 31 2.86

Playoff Pitching by Year

Lefty Gomez — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1939 WS NYA 0 0 1 1 0 1.0 3 1 0 1 9.00
1938 WS NYA 1 0 1 1 0 7.0 9 3 1 5 3.86
1937 WS NYA 2 0 2 2 0 18.0 16 3 2 8 1.50
1936 WS NYA 2 0 2 2 0 15.1 14 8 11 9 4.70
1932 WS NYA 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 9 1 1 8 1.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (736 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Lefty Gomez — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home1804693476033.162
Away1884342557026.131

Pitching — Home / Away

Lefty Gomez — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home1801363.111644425478512.92
Away1881138.211254895466213.87

Last 10 Games — Batting

Lefty Gomez — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1943-05-30 MINCHWL 100000000
1942-08-14 NYYPHAW 300000003
1942-07-29 NYYCHWL 100000000
1942-07-21 NYYCLEW 300000002
1942-07-13 NYYDETW 400000001
1942-07-05 NYYPHAW 300000002
1942-06-26 NYYCHWL 100000001
1942-06-19 NYYCLEL 300000000
1942-06-05 NYYCLEW 200000001
1942-05-29 NYYMINW 534000200

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Lefty Gomez — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1943-05-30 MINCHW L 4.2443500
1942-08-14 NYYPHA W 6.0422740
1942-07-29 NYYCHW — 2.2644310
1942-07-21 NYYCLE W 6.0422421
1942-07-13 NYYDET W 9.0433570
1942-07-05 NYYPHA W 7.0610460
1942-06-26 NYYCHW L 7.0644800
1942-06-19 NYYCLE L 7.0555611
1942-06-05 NYYCLE W 4.0220530
1942-05-29 NYYMIN W 9.0411860

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Lefty Gomez — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 368 0 56 393 20 20

Season-by-Season Fielding

Lefty Gomez — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1930 NYA P 15 0 1 18 0 0
1931 NYA P 40 0 6 43 1 1
1932 NYA P 37 0 2 36 2 3
1933 NYA P 35 0 4 30 4 0
1934 NYA P 38 0 7 42 1 2
1935 NYA P 34 0 6 49 2 2
1936 NYA P 31 0 4 29 1 3
1937 NYA P 34 0 3 36 3 1
1938 NYA P 32 0 12 51 1 5
1939 NYA P 26 0 2 33 1 0
1940 NYA P 9 0 1 2 0 0
1941 NYA P 23 0 6 11 2 2
1942 NYA P 13 0 2 9 1 0
1943 WS1 P 1 0 0 4 1 1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Lefty Gomez Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 368

Awards & Honors

Lefty Gomez — Awards & Honors
Year Award Notes
1938 Baseball Magazine All-Star P2
1938 TSN All-Star P
1937 Baseball Magazine All-Star P1
1937 Baseball Magazine All-Star P2
1937 Pitching Triple Crown
1934 Baseball Magazine All-Star P1
1934 Baseball Magazine All-Star P2
1934 Pitching Triple Crown
1934 TSN All-Star P
1932 Baseball Magazine All-Star P3

Award Voting History

Lefty Gomez — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1938 Most Valuable Player AL 30th 1.0 336 0
1937 Most Valuable Player AL 9th 14.0 80 0
1934 Most Valuable Player AL 3rd 60.0 80 0
1932 Most Valuable Player AL 5th 27.0 80 0

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Lefty Gomez (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Tommy Bridges
    194-138, 3.57 ERA
  2. 94
    Bob Buhl
    166-132, 3.55 ERA
  3. 80
    Joe Coleman
    142-135, 3.70 ERA
  4. 77
    Steve Barber
    121-106, 3.36 ERA
  5. 76
    Bob Lemon HOF
    207-128, 3.23 ERA
  6. 76
    Van Mungo
    120-115, 3.47 ERA

Compare Lefty Gomez

Side-by-side career stat comparisons against Gomez's closest peers by position and era.

vs Cy Young
vs Walter Johnson
vs Curt Schilling
vs Clayton Kershaw
vs Christy Mathewson
vs Lefty Grove

Browse all MLB player comparisons →

Lefty Gomez: the record in brief

According to the bio, Lefty Gomez debuted on April 29, 1930 and played a final game on May 30, 1943. The season rows list, in order, the New York Yankees (1930 through 1942) and the Washington Senators (1943). The bio lists Gomez as a pitcher who threw and hit left-handed. Gomez is listed at 6 feet, 2 inches and 173 pounds. Gomez was born on November 26, 1908, in Rodeo, CA, USA. The bio records the death on February 17, 1989, in Greenbrae, CA, USA. Lefty Gomez was the playing name; the full given name is Vernon Louis.

Gomez went 189-102 with a 3.34 ERA in 368 games, 320 of them starts. The totals include 1,468 strikeouts, 173 complete games, and 28 shutouts. The leagues Gomez pitched in allowed 4.16 earned runs per nine over those seasons, so the career ERA was 19.7% better than average. 1934 brought Gomez a season-high 26 wins. 1937 produced Gomez's most strikeouts, 194.

Frequently Asked Questions about Lefty Gomez

What years did Lefty Gomez play?
Lefty Gomez played in Major League Baseball from 1930 to 1943.
Was Lefty Gomez a pitcher?
Yes. Lefty Gomez pitched in the major leagues, recording 189 wins and 1468 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Lefty Gomez hit?
Lefty Gomez hit 0 career home runs with 133 hits.
Is Lefty Gomez in the Hall of Fame?
Yes. Lefty Gomez was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
What teams did Lefty Gomez play for?
Lefty Gomez played for 2 teams: the New York Yankees (1930–1942) and the Washington Senators (1943).
What awards did Lefty Gomez win?
Lefty Gomez won 2 pitching Triple Crowns (1934 and 1937). He was selected to 7 All-Star Games.
What were Lefty Gomez's career stats?
In 368 games, Lefty Gomez went 189-102 with a 3.34 ERA, 1,468 strikeouts, 2,503.0 innings pitched, and 9 saves. At the plate he had 133 hits and 0 home runs.
What position did Lefty Gomez play?
Lefty Gomez played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Lefty Gomez and how much did he weigh?
Lefty Gomez was listed at 6 feet 2 inches and 173 pounds.
What was Lefty Gomez's career ERA?
Lefty Gomez finished with a 3.34 career ERA, going 189-102 with 1,468 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Lefty Gomez have?
Lefty Gomez recorded 1,468 career strikeouts.
How many All-Star Games did Lefty Gomez make?
Lefty Gomez was selected to 7 All-Star Games.